Arsenal could repeat Martin Odegaard trick with Real Madrid youngster who Arteta is 'obsessed' with

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta could look to sign another Real Madrid youngster this summer, according to reports in Spain.

Arteta and Arsenal pulled off a masterstroke when they signed Martin Odegaard on a permanent deal from the Spanish giants in 2021, following the Norwegian's successful six-month loan spell at the Emirates.

The Gunners paid around £35m for Odegaard, a fee which now looks like an absolute bargain for the Premier League leaders.

Odegaard has been one of the stand-out players of the season, with his 10 goals and seven assists in the league helping Arsenal to the top of the table, where they are eight points clear of closest rivals Manchester City.

Arteta could look to poach another talented youngster from Real Madrid this summer, according to Spanish publication El Nacional, as reported by Football365.

Arteta 'obsessed' with Diaz

It is claimed that Arsenal have been monitoring former City winger Brahim Diaz, who left the Etihad to join Madrid on a six-and-a-half-year deal in 2019.

After struggling to make an impact at the Bernabeu, Diaz was sent out on loan to AC Milan and has now spent the last three seasons at San Siro, scoring 16 goals and providing 10 assists in 110 games for the Italian club.

He could join Milan permanently at the end of the season for €22m (£19.3m), although the report claims that the Italian club want that figure lowered to between €13-15m (£11.5m-£13.2m) to consider a deal.

However, El Nacional have reported Arsenal could make an approach for Diaz, claiming Arteta is 'obsessed' with the player who he believes 'can have a very leading role at Arsenal'.

It is also claimed that Arteta believes that he can improve Diaz as he did with Odegaard is he signs another talented forward 'discarded by Madrid'.

It remains to be seen whether Arsenal would indeed pursue a deal for the 23-year-old forward, with the reported interest something of a surprise given Diaz's underwhelming scoring record in Italian football.